


Warmth

by bortzy



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Comfort, Crushes, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-12
Updated: 2017-05-12
Packaged: 2018-10-31 00:05:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10887741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bortzy/pseuds/bortzy
Summary: Jaehee never thought she would be in this position. Out of the entire RFA, she’s the one who’s the least connected. The least close to each member. Luciel gets along with all the others, yet here he is in her apartment, sharing pizza with her as though they were best friends.





	Warmth

**Author's Note:**

> time for the rarest of rarepairs  
> full of clichés but it doesn't matter because I NEED CONTENT!!!!

Jaehee can barely focus. She’s dead on her feet, and through her delirious state she feels as though she’s probably swaying where she stands. She got little more than two hours sleep the previous night. The night before wasn’t much better, but at least she managed to rack up a solid six hours altogether. She doesn’t remember the last time she had a proper meal, either, and now she’s had a glass or two of champagne she’s already feeling a little worse for wear.

Alcohol was probably a bad idea.

Someone’s talking to her. She can see them and she can see their mouth moving and she can hear the voice, but for some reason she can’t distinguish what shapes the words are making. It’s as though they’re pouring into her brain in a dull monotone and filtering straight back out again, like a sieve. She doesn’t care enough to focus on them. Luckily for her, Mr Han is also here, and by the sounds of it he’s responding to this other person. A few chunks of their sentences are making their way into her brain. It sounds like a boring conversation, and she doesn’t care enough to try and focus.

This is an RFA party, she knows that at least. It’s the reason why she’s got so little sleep. Mr Han decided to take time off work for it, so she’s been working overtime to cover for him. She glances around the sea of people, trying to pick out the other members. Zen is easy to spot; he’s surrounded by a large group of people, and his white hair and outfit stands out among them. Then she sees Yoosung. He’s fairly easy to spot too, but that’s only because he’s close by. Mr Han is next to her, but… where’s Luciel? He’s usually easy to pick out in a crowd with his red hair and big personality, but he doesn’t seem to be anywhere in her line of sight.

She furrows her eyebrows. She knows for sure he’s at the event, because she saw him earlier. She mumbles a vague “excuse me” to Mr Han and quietly slips away into the crowd. She runs into Yoosung first, and when he speaks she finds that, thankfully, she can understand what he’s saying.

“Jaehee, are you okay? You look tired.”

She nods and glances to the side. “Have you seen Luciel?” She isn’t certain why she’s so intent on finding him.

“Oh… I think he said he was going outside for some air…?” Yoosung says uncertainly.

She thanks him and turns around before he can say another word.

Maybe she could use some air too. Maybe… she could stay outside for the remainder of the party and avoid being talked at by anyone else. She finds her way over to the doors and pulls them open, closing them carefully behind her as she steps into the hallway. She heads to the exit, cursing herself when she stumbles. Heels had been a bad idea.

Eventually she pushes open the doors into the outside world, and is thankful when the cold air hits her face. It grounds her, and her head isn’t spinning quite as much as it was when she was in the stuffy, warm party hall.

“Jaehee?” A surprised voice greets her from her left, and she turns to look at who it is. She feels an odd sense of relief wash over her at the sight of the familiar mop of messy red hair and ridiculous glasses. “Are you okay?”

She nods and smiles at him, closing the door behind her. “Yes. I just needed some air.”

“You look exhausted,” Luciel observes, sounding concerned. “Have you eaten today?”

Jaehee thinks for a moment. “I think I had… something…” She frowns. She genuinely can’t remember.

“Oh, God.” Luciel steps over to her, a worried expression on his face. “Are you drunk?”

She shakes her head, and feels his warm hands resting on her shoulders. She blinks up at him. “No. I only had two glasses.”

“But you haven’t eaten,” he points out, sighing. “Where’s your jacket?”

As soon as he says this, Jaehee realises how cold she is, and she immediately brings her arms up to hug herself. Her arms are bare, and the only warmth she can feel is from Luciel’s hands on her shoulders. He draws them away, and she almost protests until she sees him taking off his own jacket.

“Wait…”

“No, it’s fine,” he insists, holding the jacket out for her. She has to admit, it _does_ look warm. He has a soft smile on his face as he holds it out for her, and her hands twitch to let go of her arms and take it, but she resists.

“Won’t you get cold?” she asks him pointedly. He glances down at his arms. He’s wearing a long-sleeved shirt.

“I’m cold-blooded,” he deadpans. Jaehee usually wouldn’t laugh at his stupid jokes, but she finds a quick huff of hair escape her. Despite herself, she reaches out and takes hold of the jacket and slides it on. It’s too big for her, but it’s warm from his body heat and feels… safe.

“Thank you,” she says quietly, and he grins at her.

“It’s no problem.”

There’s a short pause where Luciel looks away, but Jaehee catches herself watching him. It’s winter, so it’s starting to get dark which means the outdoor lights are already on. All she can really see of his profile is a dim silhouette, but even so, he looks… sad.

“What are you doing out here?” she finds herself asking. He doesn’t turn to face her, simply tilting his head to the side a little as he looks up at the sky.

“Same reason as you. I needed some air,” he says, and his voice sounds strangely faraway. Maybe that’s just her tiredness.

As if to prove her point, she feels herself swaying on her feet. Luciel apparently notices out the corner of his eye and turns to look at her.

“Are you sure you’re not drunk?” he asks. Jaehee nods.

“Just tired.”

“Tired? How tired, exactly?”

“I… didn’t sleep well last night.” _Or the night before. Or any night in the past week._

“How much sleep did you get?” It’s this moment that Jaehee notices his breath is visible in the air in front of him. It curls up towards the sky in a soft cloud before fading into nothing. Jaehee had known it was cold, but she hadn’t realised it was _that_ cold.

“A few hours,” she tells him vaguely.

“How many?”

“Four,” she lies. Luciel raises his eyebrow in disbelief. It strikes her as strange. He doesn’t seem to be in disbelief that she slept for as little as four hours… it’s as though he sees right through her lie. “Okay. Maybe closer to two,” she finally admits.

“That’s not healthy, Jaehee,” he says. The way he says her name is filled with sadness.

“You don’t sleep well either,” she points out. Luciel lets out a small laugh.

“Guess I’m not the right person to be telling you to sleep more.”

Perhaps she and Luciel are more similar than she’d thought.

“You should sleep more. And eat properly, too,” she tells him. In spite of her current situation, she’s worried about him. At least Jaehee eats reasonably well more than half the time. By the sounds of it, Luciel barely eats anything other than Honey Buddha Chips. He gives her a smile.

“Probably,” he agrees, “But I guess I don’t see much point.”

“Why not?” Luciel seems strangely serious tonight, and Jaehee isn’t quite sure how to take it. She’s half expecting him to start rambling about ‘his love, Elly’, or perhaps how he’s found a way to convert PhD Pepper into a replacement for nuclear power, but the change never comes. It’s as though ‘707’ is absent tonight, and Jaehee is witnessing the more raw side of the man she knows as Luciel Choi. It’s strange and unexpected, and she isn’t entirely sure whether she likes or dislikes it yet.

“It doesn’t really matter,” he dismisses, turning to look at a low wall just in front of them. “Did you want to sit down? You look like you’re about to collapse.”

Jaehee considers arguing for a moment, but nods instead. They head over to the wall and sit down. She contemplates taking off her shoes, but that would probably be rude. At least she doesn’t need to stand anymore.

“It’s stifling in there,” she tells him, tugging the jacket around herself more tightly. “I thought I was going to collapse.”

Luciel nods in agreement, clasping his hands together as he leans forwards and rests his elbows on his lap. “It was making me feel dizzy,” he confesses. “That’s why I came out here.”

“Me too,” Jaehee agrees. She glances over at him, and notices him shivering. “Are you cold?”

“I’m fine.”

“Take this,” she says, beginning to take the jacket off, but she’s surprised when she feels a hand rest on her arm to stop her.

“Honestly, it’s okay,” he insists. “You look colder than me, anyway.”

She blinks at him in surprise, suddenly realising he’s shuffled closer to her. His eyes flick down to her legs, and she feels her face instinctively heat up.

“Your legs are bare too. At least let me cover your arms,” he says softly, looking back up at her.

She must be tired. There’s no other feasible explanation as to why she’s blushing right now at Luciel’s comments.

“I feel bad,” she answers him finally. Luciel thinks for a moment, and reaches up to run his fingers through his hair as he does.

“Perhaps we should go back inside?” he suggests. Jaehee looks over at the building and sighs.

“I suppose we should.”

She goes to stand up, and is pleased to find her legs don’t give way under her. She really just wants to go home but she knows she can’t yet. Luciel pushes the doors open and holds them for her to step in first, and follows behind her.

This is the point her legs choose to stop supporting her weight, and as she stumbles she desperately reaches out. She feels a pair of hands catch her under her arms, and her hand grips hold of Luciel’s shirt as she desperately tries to regain her balance. He holds her for a moment, studying her face.

“I’m taking you home,” he says.

“What? No, I have to stay,” she insists. Mr Han would never let her leave yet…

“Jaehee, you’re so tired you can barely stand. I’m taking you home, and we’re buying food for you on the way.”

“I can’t!” she protests, “Mr Han…”

“Jumin can deal with it,” Luciel tells her, his hands on her waist firmly in an attempt to support her weight. At some point she had started gripping hold of his arms. She doesn’t remember when.

“My job… I can’t just _leave_.”

“You can. I’ll text Jumin and tell him you were feeling ill,” he says. “Do you have anything inside?”

“My… my coat.”

“Sit down,” he gestures to a window ledge next to them. “I’ll get it.”

Jaehee sits thankfully on the ledge as she watches him go, her waist now feeling cold. She frowns in confusion at herself. Is she really so starved of affection that she’s currently picturing how warm Luciel’s hands felt on her waist? _Luciel_ , of all people. The man who irritates her like no one else can. The man who calls her a robot. The man who… until tonight she thought was an immature, childish boy.

He seems to care for her. Obviously, he cares for all the RFA members, but Jaehee had always felt oddly… disconnected from them. Like she never quite belonged. She had no direct connection to V or Rika like the others did before they joined. She had simply been invited by Mr Han as nothing more than his assistant. A lot of the things she said often went totally unnoticed, and she rarely spoke up for fear of being ignored.

Luciel never ignored her. He teased her, yes, but he never _ignored_ her presence entirely. Quite often she only entered the chatroom when he was there too, because he didn’t treat her any differently to how he treated the others. Everyone else… they seem to walk on eggshells around her.

Part of her likes his carefree attitude.

She shakes her head to get rid of all these thoughts. It’s just because she’s tired, she tells herself. He’s a member of the RFA, so naturally she cares about him.

He returns fairly quickly, his characteristic goofy grin across his face. Now that they’re in the warm light of the hallway, his hair looks even brighter than it did when they were outside. He holds her coat out to her and she takes it. He looks at her expectantly for a moment, and she frowns in confusion.

“Unless you’d rather switch jackets?” he says, cocking his head to the side.

“ _Oh_!” She hastily slides his jacket off and hands it to him. “I apologise. I forgot I was wearing it.” The sudden lack of warmth and comfort shoots through her, and even as she pulls on her own jacket, it feels cold and unfamiliar as though it had never been hers in the first place.

Luciel pulls on his and nods his head towards the door, a small grin still on his face as he pushes his glasses up his nose. “Let’s get going.”

Jaehee follows him through the doors again, and gasps a little when the cold air bites at her face again. He leads her to a car that she thinks he sent a picture of in the messenger a few weeks ago, and holds the door open for her.

“After you,” he swings his arm out in a wide, dramatic gesture. Jaehee rolls her eyes, but her smile betrays her as she climbs into the passenger seat.

“You don’t have to do this, you know,” she says, but he simply shoots her another grin and shuts the door as she fastens her seatbelt. A few seconds later, he slides into the driver’s seat and fumbles in his pocket for the keys.

“I want to,” he finally replies. “You’re always tired. The least I can do is rescue you from an event you clearly don’t want to be at.”

“It’s not that I didn’t want to be there,” Jaehee protests. “It’s just that…” She trails off.

“You didn’t want to be there _right now_?” Luciel raises an eyebrow in amusement as he starts up the car. “It’s okay. I get it. I wasn’t particularly feeling up to it today, either.”

Jaehee folds her arms and gives him a condescending look. “Am I just your excuse to get out of it?”

“No! Of course not!” he insists, pulling the car out onto the main road. “I would’ve probably left soon anyway. But this way it’s two birds, one stone, right?”

“I guess so,” she mumbles, relaxing her arms again and placing her hands on her lap as she turns to watch the world outside the window. There’s silence for a few moments, and Jaehee simply watches the streets fly past and looks at the stars in the sky. Despite the loud hum of the engine, she feels peaceful. Almost as though she could fall asleep right here and now.

“What food do you want?” Luciel asks eventually, and Jaehee turns to him in surprise.

“That’s okay. I have food at home.”

Luciel shakes his head and smiles as he watches the road ahead. “It’s fine. I want to buy you something so I know you’ll eat it.”

“I… uh…” Jaehee isn’t sure how to respond to that.

He glances at her, still smiling. “We could just get pizza? That’s always a good idea.”

Jaehee can’t help but laugh. “I thought we were supposed to be making each other eat healthily?”

Luciel shrugs, and his grin widens as he looks back to the road. “Guess today can be our cheat day.”

Luciel ends up pulling up outside a takeaway pizza place and parking quickly. “What kind do you want?”

“I don’t mind,” she says, pulling her purse out her coat pocket. Luciel waves his hand in the air.

“No, no, I’m paying,” he says. “I’m the one who dragged you out here in the first place.”

“I… it’s fine, I can give you money,” she says, holding some out for him. She would feel guilty if he bought this for her, especially considering he offered to drive her home too. Luciel looks at her for a moment before eventually sighing and taking the money.

“Okay, fine, but that’s only because I don’t want to argue,” he says, grinning and opening the car door. “Do you just want plain cheese, then?”

“That’ll be fine. Thank you.”

This all feels a little surreal, and as Luciel slams the car door behind him, she watches him go. Once again, she’s left with her thoughts, and this time she’s left to wonder why Luciel’s being so nice to her right now. He seems tired too, so perhaps it really _is_ just a matter of ‘I’m tired, you’re tired, let’s leave’ but she can’t help but hope it could be something more.

But, why? What more could she possibly want from him?

She considers checking her phone, but decides against it. The only person who may have contacted her would be Mr Han, and she doesn’t particularly want to deal with that right now. She would rather time froze, so she could live in this night forever.

It’s not long before Luciel returns, holding two pizza boxes in his hands, and he passes them to Jaehee as he sits back down. The smell immediately fills the car, and Jaehee’s mouth starts watering. She hadn’t realised quite how hungry she was, but now all she wants is to eat these. Although, luckily she’s polite enough to wait until she’s home.

Jaehee doesn’t know what suddenly makes her invite Luciel inside to eat with her, but before she knows what’s happening, they’re sitting at her table eating slightly too greasy pizza straight out the box. She never thought she would be in this position. Out of the entire RFA, she’s the one who’s the least connected. The least close to each member. Luciel gets along with all the others, yet here he is in her apartment, sharing pizza with her as though they were best friends.

“Are you happy, Jaehee?” he asks suddenly once they’ve almost finished, and Jaehee looks up at him in surprise.

“Right now?” Her voice is uncertain, and she’s not quite sure how to answer.

“Not specifically… I mean in general,” he says, waving a half-eaten slice of pizza around vaguely. “With your life. Your job. Everything.”

“Oh.” Jaehee still isn’t sure how to respond to this. “I… I am satisfied with what I’ve managed to achieve.”

Luciel gives her a small smile and shakes his head. “No, that’s not what I meant.” He leans a little closer, as though making a promise that this conversation will stay a secret from everyone else. “Are you happy?” he asks again, and although his voice is softer than last time, there’s a new weight to it.

Jaehee blinks at him, and she notices how his eyes are filled with… what? Something heavy. Something she can’t quite place, especially in her tired, delirious state. “I don’t know,” she answers honestly.

“You don’t need those, do you?” he comments, gesturing to her glasses.

“Oh… no, I don’t. Mr Han makes me wear them. It’s part of my uniform.”

To her surprise, Luciel reaches up and gently takes hold of them, sliding them off her face and folding them in his hands. “You’re not working now,” he says with a small smile as he places them on the table.

Jaehee feels her breath catch in her throat, and it’s suddenly like she’s seeing Luciel in a new light. Her thoughts fall back to how she never thought anyone cared about her. To how she was always the one on the outskirts of the RFA. The one who was never close to Rika or V. The one who was brushed aside and treated as nothing more than an assistant. Neither convenient nor inconvenient. It’s difficult to admit that Mr Han was always the one who gave her the most attention, and that was simply because he paid her.

Before she knows what’s happening, she’s crying.

Luciel’s reaction is almost immediate. He slides his chair closer and pulls her into him for a hug, cradling her head against his chest.

“It’s okay,” he whispers. “You’re okay.”

Jaehee doesn’t respond, she just continues crying. She isn’t entirely sure why she’s crying. Maybe because she hasn’t felt as though someone cared in such a long time. Her hands rest on his chest and clutch at his shirt. His dress shirt. She’s ruining it, but he doesn’t seem to care.

He’s softer than she expected, although in hindsight it should have been obvious. She had though that, being an agent, he would have to be tough and muscular and defined, and while Luciel most definitely isn’t weak, he’s also not… cold and hard. Perhaps it’s all the junk food he eats, or perhaps that’s just how he is, but either way Jaehee finds comfort in it in a way she never thought she would.

Eventually she pulls back, wiping her eyes on her sleeve.

“I apologise,” she says quietly.

“Jaehee, you don’t have to apologise for that,” Luciel says, and then he pauses. “I think perhaps you should sleep now.”

Jaehee nods, looking down and avoiding eye contact. “I think I’m just tired. Thank you… for the pizza.”

“Hey, that’s okay,” he says, and she can hear the smile in his voice. “I’m always up for being your pizza buddy.” There’s a pause as Jaehee attempts to return her breathing to a regular pace, and then Luciel speaks again. “I suppose I should get going now.”

Jaehee’s head snaps up to look at him. “Stay,” she blurts out, and she sees Luciel’s eyes widen in surprise.

“Stay?” he asks uncertainly.

“Yes. Stay,” she decides. “I… I don’t want to be alone.”

Is this fair? Surely it’s selfish to make him stay when he might not want to, but the conflict in his eyes tells her that perhaps not all hope is lost.

“Are you sure?” he asks slowly, and Jaehee feels her heart leap in surprise. She hadn’t expected him to allow this at all, let alone give in so easily.

“Yes,” she breathes.

“Where will I sleep?”

Jaehee pauses. She doesn’t have a spare room, but… she does have a sofa.

“I can sleep on the sofa, and you can use my bed,” she suggests. To her surprise, Luciel’s face breaks out into a grin.

“I’m not kicking you out your own bed. Not when you’re this tired,” he says in amusement. “I’ll sleep on the sofa.”

Jaehee opens her mouth to argue, but she doesn’t want Luciel to leave altogether, so she decides to allow it.

She stands, slightly wobbly on her feet. Luciel stands with her.

“Do you need me to put you to bed?” he teases. She swats at his arm.

“Don’t be rude,” she scolds, but in spite of herself, she finds that she’s smiling.

Luciel does, in fact, end up helping her to her room, and Jaehee flops down on the bed, which makes him grin.

“Not gonna change clothes?” he asks.

“I took my shoes off,” she mumbles into the pillow, as though that were enough. She hears him laugh. She never realised how much she liked his laugh.

“Okay. Sleep well.”

She hears his footsteps start to leave.

“Wait!” she suddenly calls out, pushing herself up so she can turn and look at him. He stops halfway to the door, turning in confusion.

“Yeah?”

Jaehee opens her mouth and closes it, unsure what to say. “Can… can you…” She trails off, and the pause grows unnaturally long. Luciel turns around fully and takes a few steps towards her.

“Can I… what?” he whispers, as though speaking too loudly will scare her away.

“Can… can you stay here? Just for a while.” The thought of falling asleep alone is suddenly terrifying.

Luciel furrows his eyebrows. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” he says, but he doesn’t move to leave. Jaehee nods.

“Please.”

Maybe it’s something about how lonely she looks, or perhaps it’s something more, but Luciel slowly walks over to her bed and sits down carefully.

“Just until you’re asleep,” he says quietly. Jaehee feels a smile break out across her face, and she lies down on her back. It takes a few moments of her lying there silently before she feels the weight of Luciel denting the mattress next to her.

His body is so close, and in the darkness of this room, she feels as though nothing can touch them. No one can hurt either of them, because all that matters is that they’re here right now.

When Jaehee wakes the next morning, she’s lying on her side with a warm body pressed against her back, arms wrapped around her and holding her close. Her dress is creased and her makeup is probably smudged, but she doesn’t care. She smiles anyway.


End file.
